In honor of Memorial Day, Sharon Hamilton sent the following to be included in our tribute to military personnel. Sharon shares these photos and thoughts: We owe a lot to the men and women who have fought on our behalf, so we can have an ordinary life. Memorial is just one day we remember and vow to always remember all of our military personnel. Photo of Sharon Hamilton’s Great-Great-Grandfather’s brother, who served in the Civil War, like her Great-Great-Grandfather. General Daniel Cameron gained his citizenship by fighting for the North. Navy Seal Uniform Cover of Sharon Hamilton’s latest book, SEAL My Destiny. Sharon Hamilton writes Navy SEAL romance, about military heroes who thrill strong women, who are lucky to love them back. Sharon began her serious writing with freewriting exercises, using prompts to inspire her writing. You, too, can jumpstart your writing. Choose prompts from The Write Spot…
Write about someone in the military. Prompt #74
Write about someone you know who is currently serving in the military or who has served. What branch of the military? What country? What would you like us to know about this person? Is there an author who writes about the armed services or books you like with a military theme? Tell us, we want to know. Photo of Purple Heart Medal taken by Jane Person. Her father, First Lt. John Person, was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart following his combat in World War II, April 1943. The Purple Heart is one of the most recognized and respected medals awarded to members of the U.S. Military armed forces. Introduced as the “Badge of Military Merit” by General George Washing in 1782, the Purple Heart is also the nation’s oldest military award. Prompt: Write about someone in the military.
Threepenny Review reading period January 1- June 30
“The Threepenny Review is a quarterly literary and arts magazine that publishes criticism, memoir, fiction and poetry as well as review of the performing and visual arts.” —May/June 2014 Writes Digest magazine Reading period is January 1 — June 30. Click here for submission guidelines. From Marlene, here’s an idea: Always have writing ready, so when you hear about submissions that match your writing. . . you’re ready to submit!
Guest Blogger Arlene Mandell: Write Quirky, Break Free
Guest Blogger Arlene Mandell writes: “Found tiny brown frog in bathroom sink.” Both the frog and the notation in my journal made me smile. This reminded me that not all entries must be “worthwhile” in the service of self-analysis or material for lofty literary purposes. I’m seventy-three, have been writing for most of my life, and have cabinets, folders and computer files filled with work. Quite a bit has been published. And there’s plenty that hasn’t been. Recently I’ve been giving myself permission to snip, toss and DELETE anything that hasn’t worked thus far and may not be worth expending any more energy on. For example, there was the stack of dusty manuscript copies of Slow Kissing, my first novel which I shipped from Closter, New Jersey, to Santa Rosa, California, fourteen years ago. No matter how many times I revised it, it just wasn’t very good. One rainy morning…
Being optimistic is like a muscle . . .
“Being optimistic is like a muscle that gets stronger with use. Makes it easier when the tough times arrive. You have to change the way you think in order to change the way you feel.” — Robin Roberts, Everybody’s Got Something, her memoir. Note from Marlene: Sometimes the sweetness of serendipity brings tears to my eyes. I have a list of quotes to post on Thursday Quote Day on The Write Spot Blog. This one, by Robin Roberts, was next in line when I looked in my quotes file. I booted up to post the quote and surprise! There was a post waiting for approval by marcyt, writing about cancer and doctors and well, you should read this one. Marcyt’s post is in sync with Robin’s quote. Thank you, marcyt, for your lovely, poignant, gorgeous writing. Everyone: Please . . . do make comments on any of the posts on…
How has writing changed your life? Prompt #73
Today’s prompt: Write about how writing has changed your life, or an aspect of your life. Submit your 600-word essay reflection on the writing life by emailing to Writer’s Digest magazine at: wdsubmissions@fwmedia.com with “5-Minute Memoir” in the subject line.
Start with something that really happened . . .
In Escaping into the Open, The Art of Writing True, Elizabeth Berg (one of my favorite authors) writes: Whenever people ask me where I get my material, I am genuinely befuddled. “Well . . . from life!” is what I usually say. . . . each of us, no matter who we are or what we do, is offered potential story ideas daily. The people we know, the things that happen to them and us, the random scenes we witness and the conversations we overhear — all of these things are rich with raw material; all of them are capable of serving as a vehicle or springboard for a good story, in one way or another. We need only be aware. We need only be awake, and curious, and willing to share. Note from Marlene: Last night in the Jumpstart writing workshop that I facilitate, this very thing happened. I…
It happened because . . . Prompt #72
Set your timer for 12 minutes. Start by writing “It happened because” . . . then write for 12 minutes without stopping. No thinking. No crossing out words. Just write. It happened because . . .
You’re doing what? Magazine submissions.
Adair Lara talked about publishing in magazines during her Summer 2009 Writing Class, giving me the idea for this blog post. 1. Research . . . really research. . . where you could send your writing. Make sure the publication you have in mind publishes the type of writing you want to submit. Read the magazine you hope to be published in cover-to-cover, including the ads. Notice the tone of the articles/essays. Research the demographics . . . make a list of who the ads are geared towards (age, gender, lifestyle, socioeconomic). Make sure your article/essay fits those demographics. You can research magazines at libraries and ask for magazines from: hairdressers, medical offices, etc. Of course, buying magazines is good. We want to support our local vendors, but sometimes we need to use free resources. 2. Look at the magazine’s masthead. . . this is in the first few pages…
Guest Blogger Adair Lara talks about her latest obsession.
Guest Blogger Adair Lara writes: Voice in writing is my new obsession. I’ve been talking nonstop to my memoir students about it until they all look at me cross-eyed. “You must think of your experiences as material! And of yourself as a character!” Many of them have been taking the workshop with me for years, climbing the three flights of steps every Saturday to the redwood attic of the Victorian house I live in. I was all about identifying the emotional beats of the arc when some of them started. They must have been sick of hearing me say, “What’s the beat?” (The wine Lee Anna brings helps). And they must have been surprised –why had I not mentioned this new approach before, if it was so important? Well, I didn’t because even though voice is the most obvious thing in the world, we don’t see it. It’s also all…